Myrtillin is an anthocyanin. It is the 3-glucoside of delphinidin. It can be found in plants, most abundantly in black beans, blackcurrant, blueberry, huckleberry, bilberry leaves and in various myrtless, roselle plantss, and Centella asiatica plant. It is also present in yeast and oatmeal. The sumac fruit's pericarp owes its dark red colour to anthocyanin pigments, of which chrysanthemin, myrtillin and delphinidin have been identified.

The various colors, such as red, mauve, purple, violet, and blue in Hydrangea macrophylla are developed from myrtillin complexes with metal ions called metalloanthocyanins.

Biosynthesis and metabolism

Anthocyanidin 3-O-glucosyltransferase converts delphinidin to myrtillin in plants including Silene dioica and Vitis vinifera. The glucose unit is transferred from UDP-glucose, giving uridine diphosphate (UDP) as a byproduct.

The enzyme anthocyanin 3-O-glucoside 6''-O-hydroxycinnamoyltransferase from Perilla frutescens produces delphinidin 3-(6-p-coumaroyl)glucoside from myrtillin and p-coumaroyl-CoA in the anthocyanin biosynthesis pathway.

References